Abstract
A polydopamine polyelectrolyte hydrogel was developed by ionic crosslinking dextran sulfate with a copolymer of polyethyleneimine and polydopamine. Gelation was promoted by the slow hydrolysis of glucono-δ-lactone. Within this hydrogel, silver nanoparticles were generated in situ, ranging from 25 nm to 200 nm in size. The antibacterial activity of the hydrogel was proportional to the quantity of silver nanoparticles produced, increasing as the nanoparticle count rose. The hydrogels demonstrated broad-spectrum antibacterial efficacy at concentrations up to 10(8) cells/mL for P. aeruginosa, K. pneumoniae, E. coli and S. aureus, the four most prevalent bacterial pathogens in chronic septic wounds. In ex vivo studies on human skin, biocompatibility was enhanced by the presence of polydopamine. Dextran sulfate is a known irritant, but formulations with polydopamine showed improved cell viability and reduced levels of the inflammatory biomarkers IL-8 and IL-1α. Silver nanoparticles can inhibit cell migration, but an ex vivo human skin study showed significant re-epithelialization in wounds treated with hydrogels containing silver nanoparticles.